Today we have a different post for you and would like to introduce you to our new Sew Essential vlog. For anyone who doesn't know 'vlogging' is essentially producing video content to communicate with your followers and I'm very excited to be bringing you our first vlog just in time for Christmas. Fear not we will still have our regular blog posts running alongside the vlog too, this just gives you an additional way to keep up to date with what is going on at Sew Essential. Continue reading →
This Tilly and the Buttons Agnes pattern in our lovely geometric jersey fabric was the perfect quick and easy sewing pattern for bouncing back after my challenging denim skirt project. Plus I find long sleeved T shirt tops one of the most useful things to have in my wardrobe all year round - perfect for layering, comfortable and ideal for wearing with skirts or trousers they tick all the boxes. I also thought this easy top project would be a good way to try and understand a fitting issue I have where the fabric of the garment gathers into creases that run from my armpit to the shoulder seam. At first we thought maybe I had made a mistake with the sleeve insertion, but then I noticed it on some of my favourite ready to wear garments too and so I had discovered my first fitting issue. That's the wonderful and awful thing about dressmaking isn't it - your standards for the fit, hang and finish of a garment become so much higher than they ever were before. I never noticed this before and now it bugs me every time I wear something where it presents itself and that is how this quick easy project became a little bit more interesting... Continue reading →
I'm starting this post with an incredibly honest opening statement - sewing this denim skirt nearly killed me! It shook my love of sewing to the core, it made me feel incredibly frustrated and I started to doubt my sewing ability - big time. This wasn't because there was anything wrong with the pattern, it was excellent - the instructions were very clear and easy to understand and the pattern cutting was good (apart from the waistband, which I think was too short and I will talk about later). It was because my beginner's luck, which lasted the whole of my first year of sewing, had finally run out. Have you ever had one of those projects where everything and I mean everything went wrong? Even the most simple of tasks that you normally whizz through without a second thought somehow go badly and end up in a lengthy and depressing unpicking session? Yeah, it was my first one of those - with bells on! The good news is I lived to tell the tale, I like the skirt, I learned loads and I'm back on the wagon. Here's how I got there... Continue reading →
Whether you're thrilled or mortified at the prospect Christmas is just around the corner and what better way to get in the festive spirit than making your own decorations?! We have Christmas fabrics, ribbons, decoration kits and more and have created this handy page to help you find exactly what you are looking for plus we thought we'd share a few quick, simple ideas for whipping up some decorations in no time... Continue reading →
Ever since we started stocking the Colette pattern range I knew I wanted to make the Moneta dress. There is definitely a big gap in my wardrobe where casual every day dresses for cold weather should live - I have tonnes and tonnes of casual summer dresses and skirts, but when it comes to winter I seem to live in my jeans. In fact I'm wearing jeans right now! Last year I promised myself I would break this depressing habit and failed miserably. This year I'm on a mission with patterns like the Moneta and the Grainline Moss skirt tucked under my arm to help me along my way. Continue reading →
If you follow our blog you'll already know at Sew Essential we're people with a passion for fashion and dressmaking. If we're not at work advising customers on sewing machines, products and techniques or writing tutorials we're most likely at home sewing. In fact we even dream about sewing. No, really. For this reason we decided to work with one of our local colleges to encourage and challenge their fashion and textile students to push their creativity and sewing ability to the limit in a Sewing Bee style pattern hack competition. We worked with Jo Hall, Lecturer of Fashion and Textiles at North Warwickshire and Hinckley College to develop the project remit. I chose this simple New Look pattern as a starting point for the students and asked them to develop their own original, wearable design within the theme ‘an English Country Garden’ using fabric and supplies from Sew Essential. Continue reading →
I spotted this Simplicity jumpsuit pattern aeons ago, I thought it looked really modern and stylish and used it to promote our Simplicity patterns on social media. When our John Kaldor Hermione fabric arrived I knew I had to make something with it. I love the tropical feel of the print and when I wore it one of my girlfriends commented that it reminded her of something you'd see in one of my favourite high street stores, Warehouse, which only served to increase my love of it. I originally thought I might make some loose fitting trousers with the fabric and then I remembered the lovely jumpsuit pattern and my next project was born. Continue reading →
We've been super busy this summer at Sew Essential and thanks to summer holidays and lots of orders (thank you) the little old blog has had to take a back seat for a couple of weeks - sorry! Normal business will resume this week and I thought I'd start by sharing some of the lovely things we've been doing recently in the wonderful world of sewing. Last weekend I had the pleasure of attending the Foldline/English Girl at Home Sewing Weekender in Cambridge, which we at Sew Essential were also very proud to sponsor. More than fifty women descended upon Murray Edwards College to sew, chat and generally revel in their shared love of sewing and craft for two whole days. From the minute I entered the room on Saturday morning I knew I was going to have a lovely time. Continue reading →
This Saltspring dress project started with some fabric. Some John Kaldor Portia stretch fabric in lime green and navy. Said John Kaldor fabric ended up sat next to my desk and I just couldn't stop looking at it and, yes, I freely admit, stroking it. By the end of the day I knew I simply had to make something out of it. So, five minutes before everyone was due to finish for the day (nothing like a bit of pressure!) I decided to scour our website for a suitable sundress pattern. As soon as I saw the Saltspring I knew it was the perfect match. Ed said I would look like Lilo Lil (anyone remember Bread?!) I obviously ignored him. Continue reading →
I've always fancied a nice casual maxi dress for day to day wear, but have only ever had quite formal or dressy ones for special occasions or evenings out...until I discovered the McCalls M6744 sewing pattern that is. I loved the styling on the packet and it immediately had me dreaming of summer holidays so I grabbed one for my stash a while back when we had a McCalls pattern sale on. By the end of May I'd beavered my way through quite a few patterns in my stash and I decided it was time to give this one a go. I chose our stripy jersey fabric in red and white for a bold and different look. I thought it would look great with a denim jacket. Ed thought I would look like Where's Wally? Husbands - what do they know?! Continue reading →
I decided to make this Butterick 5948 sewing pattern to continue topping up on day to day section of my wardrobe. I thought the loose fit design would be comfy and cool for summer if I made it in one of our lovely cotton prints and I chose this pretty grey cotton fabric with the multi coloured teardrops. I thought this fabric would work well with blue denim or my guilty pleasure and summer wardrobe favourite, my white jeans. Somehow it still feels a bit wrong to be such a massive fan of white jeans, like I'm an Elizabeth Hurley wannabe or stuck in the yuppy 80s or something, but I just can't help it I LOVE them. Especially when one of the kids wipes a mucky hand across my thigh or drops an ice cream down them, such a sophisticated look. Continue reading →
This week we are thrilled to bring you the Mondrian dress sewing pattern hack from this year’s Great British Sewing Bee. In this post we’ll give you a little bit of history about the dress, suggested fabrics you can use and our top tips for acing this vintage sewing pattern. Continue reading →
